The SF Chron does a critical analysis of the SF Apple Store in terms of design, brand, and architecture.

“…a gleaming package stuffed with such goodies as an all-glass staircase. But it’s not a real building. It’s a 30-foot-high corporate branding concept that could be located anywhere. And it fails the first test of good architecture — to be a good neighbor…The computer chain that for years urged us to “think different” now imposes order from above: its outposts are interchangeable by design, with details repeated from store to store. San Francisco’s glass staircase underneath a narrow skylight replicates the centerpieces of other “flagships.” …Apple prides itself on curvaceous computers. Its iPod Minis come in five colors. I’d love to see the same design flexibility where it would matter most — the world we all share”